In operating a motel or hotel, while pillows are not the most expensive item in the furnishings, the initial investment in pillows is not insignificant, and the upkeep and replacement of these is a recurring expense item. These pillows must be washed or otherwise cleaned in some manner with a much greater frequency than would be the case if they were used, for example, in a person's home. The repeated cleaning and washing has a tendency to cause the interior stuffing of the pillow to deteriorate, so that the pillow becomes lumpy and thus uncomfortable, or deteriorates in some other fashion. At this point, the pillow must be discarded and replaced with another pillow, or the pillow must be rehabilitated in some manner.
One possible approach to rehabilitating the pillow is to open the tick of the pillow along one seam, remove the old stuffing, and replace the stuffing of the pillow. This has not proven to be totally satisfactory. First, the tick of the pillow has itself experienced some wear, so that the rehabilitated pillow still has the overall appearance of a worn object. Also, the wear on the tick may be sufficient so that continued use of the old tick as the outer casing of the rebuilt pillow may cause it to wear out before the new stuffing has deteriorated so as to need replacement. Thus, there would be the necessity of a second rehabilitating process where the still usable stuffing is placed within a new tick.
As a result of these problems, many motels and hotels have adopted the practice of simply discarding the pillows which are no longer satisfactory and purchasing new pillows. This, of course, means that over a period of time the total inventory of pillows in the establishment must be replaced.
A search of the patent literature has revealed some U.S. patents which relate generally to pillows. While it is believed that these do not relate directly to the problems discussed above, these are cited to insure that the applicatant is making a full disclosure of all prior art of possible relevance.
U.S. Pat. No. 765,519, Sperry, shows a pillow having inner and outer compartments. The outer casing is divided by ligaments into a plurality of exterior compartments which collectively surround the inner compartment.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,805,428, Buchman, shows a pillow made up of several enclosed sections of filler material.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,956,291, Hauptman, shows a pillow formed of foamed sheets which are joined together to contain down or feathers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,543,313, Schweigert, discloses a pillow which has an intersection of a lower quality filler, and an outer section of higher quality filler. The inner pillow has strap-like connections at its four corners which join to the outer casing.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,871, Wartman, shows a cushion that is formed with an outer foam structure, which is stuffed with a fibrous material.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,643, Daniello, discloses a carrying bag with a foam insert. This foam insert can be used as a cushion for a chair.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of making a rebuilt pillow, which method quite advantageously uses an existing pillow which is of less than adequate quality. It is a further object to provide such a rebuilt pillow itself.
It is an additional object to provide such a method which can be effectively utilized at the location of, or in close cooperation with, existing hotels and motels with a minimum disruption of, or interference with, the operating routine of such hotels and motels.